Our Ranch
by Pikatwig
Summary: Hayley works to manage a Pokémon Ranch and care for all sorts of Pokémon for trainers all across the Sinnoh Region. Then things change... (In memory of the Wii Shop Channel. Posted a few days early)


This month is the very last month of the Wii Shop Channel being active. It's going to be quite the end of an era. I will say this… the Wii Shop Channel came out with a game that very much entertained me when I was young and gave me countless hours of fun. What game is it? ...My Pokémon Ranch.

*hears snickers from another area*

I kid you not when I say that I honestly love that game. It, alongside Battle Revolution, were what sold me to convince my parents to buy a Wii. Heck, that game was the very first thing we bought with our Wii Points back in the day. It's still on my Wii to this day and I loved it even to this day. Thank you to Marriland for helping me to discover that game and the Wii… and for providing the content you did. You are amazing.

Kind of a funny coincidence I wanna bring up. That art-style ended up helping out with another game. I got a 3DS and Pokémon Rumble World partly because of that art-style. I honestly think it's so unique and I can't wait for a Rumble game on the Switch.

Well… let's go ahead and get this going.

I don't own Pokémon. It belongs to Nintendo, the Pokémon Company, etc.

* * *

Hayley stood next to Bebe and the members of Club Look-See as they all waited around outside of a Pokémon Committee building in Jubilife City. Hayley had her hands clasped together in hope while they continued to wait.

"Calm down, Hayley. Just calm down..." Bebe told her.

"I am calm…" Hayley told her in a firm, yet clearly scared, tone.

"You remind me of Bill when he was working to get the PC up…" Bebe commented.

"...I guess…?" Hayley blinked in confusion.

* * *

Hayley had a nice beaming smile as she jumped into the air with a paper of approval from the Committee.

"Congrats, Hayley," Bebe smiled as she walked over, "I'll be sure to tell the PC users here in Sinnoh about your ranch and get it to hold as many Pokémon as we possibly can."

"Thank you, Bebe!" Hayley responded before she quickly headed towards her house.

* * *

" _Dear diary… I DID IT! I successfully got approval to open up the Pokémon Ranches! They said that I need to move down south to an area between Sinnoh and Fiore, but I don't care about how far I need to move! I'm going to finally get the Ranch open!"_

* * *

"Alright… here I go…" Hayley whispered as she sat at a PC, "My first request for use of my ranch. You got this Hayley… you got this…"

The PC came to light and she saw a trainer with blue hair sitting around.

"Welcome to My Pokémon Ranch!" Hayley announced with a smile, "My name is Hayley. I'm the creator of the Pokémon Ranch! It's so nice to meet you!"

-Same to you.-

"The Pokémon Ranch is a place where people and Pokémon enjoy living together. You'll soon see what kind of place the Pokémon Ranch is by simply taking a look around," Hayley informed as she moved out of the way to give the other person a view of the area behind her.

-Wow…-

"So… you like what you see? You want to use the facility?" Hayley asked.

-Sure.-

"Awesome! I'll be sure to let Bebe know so that you can send Pokémon over from your PC to my Ranch!"

* * *

Hayley, alongside her Pokémon, all looked up as a blimp teleported some of the trainer's Pokémon over to the ranch. She then waved to the blimp as it flew away from the area before her attention went down to the Pokémon.

* * *

" _Dear diary… I got my first user. The trainer even sent over some of his Pokémon to be at the ranch. I'm so happy that this is working out. I think that we may need to expand it a bit already because of the number of Pokémon that came in. ...and it looks like I'm going to need some helpers."_

* * *

Some years had passed and the ranch was now capable of holding about 500 different types of Pokémon. Hayley watched as the various Pokémon ran around happily at the area they now called home. She then noticed somebody by the entrance to the farmhouse where she lived in and quickly hurried over.

"Hello. Can I help you?" Hayley asked.

"I am from the Pokémon Committee. As a thank you for your hard work at maintaining this Ranch, we have decided to give to you a special Pokémon," the Committee member informed as he handed Hayley a Master Ball, "Good day."

The member then headed away in a bit of a hurry. Hayley then tossed the ball into the air and out appeared a Phione.

"Oh… wow… I've never seen you before…" Hayley gawked as she looked at the small Pokémon, "I'm Hayley. Nice to meet you."

"Phio," the Pokémon greeted.

* * *

" _Dear diary… there was this Pokémon that I had just been suddenly given by the Pokémon Committee and I'm not totally sure why. Gotta be honest… I don't know if I'm suited to raise a Legendary Pokémon (which is what Bebe told me this Phione is. ...or is it a Mythical Pokémon? I forget). I think maybe I might trade it if I can think of something else I want…"_

* * *

"Wow…" Hayley gawked as she saw a Leafeon roam around the ranch alongside an Umbreon, a Flareon, and a Glaceon. She then turned towards the trainer that owned the four Pokémon, "Hey… that Pokémon is really cool. Do you think that we can trade? I can give you my Phione in exchange…"

"Sure thing," the trainer nodded.

Both recalled their Pokémon to their Pokéballs, looked up to the sky, and tossed them into the air. Lights shined in the air for a bit, then the Pokéballs came down to them, and they sent the Pokémon out to confirm a successful trade.

"Thank you. I'll take good care of your Leafeon."

"And I will take good care of Phione."

* * *

Some hours had passed since the trade. Hayley was now currently looking over some mail she had gotten and saw what looked to be a package from the trainer that she had a trade with earlier. She opened it up to reveal chibi looking Pokémon toys with little keys.

"So cute…" Hayley smiled as she took out a paper from the box, "'Thank you. Got this as a gift.' Cool!"

* * *

" _Dear diary… I did a trade with one of the users of my ranch and I ended up getting some really cool Pokémon toys as a thank you. I feel like I came out pretty good…"_

* * *

More time had passed and the ranch was now expanded to house up to 1000 Pokémon in total. Hayley roamed around the area outside of her ranch, having a calm look, but she then noticed something floating around. She then noticed that the Pokémon in the sky was followed by some sort of a rainbow colored cloud and gave a gasp as she realized what it meant.

"It has to be…" Hayley whispered as she got out a Master Ball that she had won in a lottery. She then tossed it and the Master Ball successfully hit, "...I caught a Mew."

* * *

The next day arrived and the trainer had arrived at the Ranch. He gave an amazed gasp upon seeing the Mew flying around.

"How is it…?"

"I saw the rainbow cloud that signaled it was coming and I managed to catch it…" Hayley informed as she walked over, "...I am now honestly regretting it a bit. Uh… think we can trade?"

"Sure. What do you want?"

"Well… looking at the area around us… I'm simply amazed at how far this ranch has come. So… I want a Pokémon Egg. Think we can do that?"

"Yeah."

* * *

" _Dear diary… I have a brand new Pokémon Egg in my hands after I traded a… very special_ Poké _mon. Hope that he likes it."_

* * *

"Hi Bebe!" Hayley smiled as she walked by the PC in her room.

-Been a while since we've had time to talk. How are you?- Bebe asked.

"Fine. Taking care of the Pokémon in the Ranch like usual," Hayley responded as she sat down, "Got filled up by a lot of Magikarp because… I don't know why."

-Alright…- Bebe nodded.

Hayley brushed her hair out of her face and leaned back into her seat as Bebe typed away at her computer.

-You hear about some of the Pokémon that live in Unova and Kalos? There are some really cool Pokémon native to the west side of the world.-

"Yeah, I know. I really want to try and get approval from the Committee so that I can have trainers from those regions send their Pokémon here. I sent in the papers, but I haven't heard back yet."

-Hope it goes well.-

* * *

"What do you mean no?!" Hayley questioned.

"We mean no."

"But why? You didn't say that!"

"Oh. Our bad. Basically, we're worried about what would happen if we took those Pokémon out of their natural habitat. Yes, your ranch is very versatile, but we had a recent discovery that made us agree to not do it."

"Being?"

A member then took out a picture of what looked to be a Raichu floating on its tail.

"What…?" Hayley blinked.

"This is an Alolan Raichu. As a result of the area it lives in the Pokémon has changed and become something new. We're worried about what would happen if we took Pokémon from Kalos or Unova out of where they naturally live. We hope that you understand."

Hayley simply nodded her head a little.

"And do remember that we won't allow Pokémon that you can't find outside of Sinnoh or Fiore unless it is something native to either region or if it already belongs to you."

"Gotcha."

* * *

" _Dear diary… looks like I can't get trainers from Unova or Kalos to send their Pokémon here. I also have high doubts I can get Pokémon from that Alola place here… ah well. Also, I was reminded that unless they belong to me, no Pokémon that can't be found in Sinnoh or Fiore allowed. ...pretty sure you can't find Paras in Sinnoh. Think it might be somewhere in Fiore, but I don't know. Also, the Committee seems to not have any issues with two-third of the Lake Trio living here… or three Legendary Dogs… or any Legendary or Mythical Pokémon for that matter. ...rules can be stupid sometimes."_

* * *

" _Dear diary… it has been quite a long time since I've seen any trainers at the ranch. Their Pokémon are still here and me and my staff are still caring for them, but I haven't had a new person come up to ask to use the space. The members of Club Look-See are still my friends, but they've all gone and slowly closed down their Ranches due to age or family or other reasons. My ranch is still going strong. ...haven't heard from that one trainer who I traded my Phione and Mew to in a while. Certainly was happy to hear that a Pokémon I traded to him helped him to become the region champion. Good job…"_

* * *

-Hey, Hayley!- Bebe yelled out via the PC one day.

"Yes?" Hayley questioned as she hurried over, "Something up?"

-The Committee is saying that they need to see you sometime soon. They asked me to contact you since they lost your contact info.-

"Alright. I'll be there in a day or so."

* * *

After a day of travel, Hayley was now back the Pokémon Committee Building at Jubilife City. She entered and gave a small smile to some of the members.

"Good to see you Hayley. Please sit down," one member told her in a calm tone.

"What's going on?" Hayley inquired.

"Your ranch has not been getting more users in a very long time. On top of that, we've had members of your club leave and many people try to get to the land they gave up."

"Ok…?"

"We're going to be honest with you. ...we've come to the decision… that we will be closing down your ranch."

"WHAT?!"

"You have until the end of the month to return the Pokémon to their trainers and to relocate yourself. We're sorry."

Hayley had a blank expression as tears began to form in her eyes. She quietly nodded her head and slowly walked towards the exit.

* * *

"Hello there… users of the ranch…" Hayley spoke to a video camera, "Uh… I have some bad news. It is with a heavy heart that I have to tell you that the Pokémon Committee is shutting down the ranch. You have until the end of the month to get your Pokémon back from the ranch. ...I want to thank you all for the many years of using the ranch. You were all amazing for doing so and I want to thank you for making my ranch… no… our ranch for being so amazing. Thank you…"

* * *

-I saw your broadcast, Hayley. I'm so sorry to hear this happened to you…- Bebe apologized.

"...you still have contact info for the trainers?" Hayley asked.

-Yeah. I'll get to transferring the Pokémon back as soon as I can.-

"Also… um… do you think that I can-?"

-You can stay with me as long as you need to.-

"Thank you."

* * *

The end of the month had passed and all of the Pokémon had been returned home. Hayley was now at Bebe's home in Hearthome City, now helping her tend to the Pokémon at the PC, but she seemed to be rather down.

"Hey, Hayley," Bebe called out as she walked in from the back of her home, "You alright?"

"I guess…" Hayley sighed, now leaning along a bed in the house, "...I promise I'll pay you or help you or-"

"Hayley. Stop. You are my best friend. You can stay here as long as you need to until you find another job."

"...thank you…" Hayley said as tears formed in her eyes.

"No crying, please," Bebe told her as she walked up and wiped away Hayley's tears.

* * *

A few days had passed since then. Hayley was simply roaming around the city with an aimless look on her face before she came across the church at the south end of the city. She walked on in and stared at a stained glass window depicting Arceus alongside the Lake Trio.

"...well… um… I guess… uh…" Hayley nervously spoke before she sighed, "...I'm completely aimless. Without my ranch… I don't know who I am anymore."

She then looked up to the image of Arceus, "...please. If you're listening… give me a sign. Just… any kind of sign to where I should be going…"

Suddenly, via a gust of wind, a poster for a boat to Alola flew on into the room. The paper landed on Hayley's lap, she picked it up with a confused look, then saw something in the image about an area called the 'Poké Pelago'.

* * *

"Hey, Bebe, do you know what this Poké Pelago thing is?" Hayley asked as she showed the poster to Bebe.

"It's a place in a Alola where trainers send their Pokémon that are in the PC to relax. In fact, it's kind of… like your ranch…" Bebe said in realization.

"Really?" Hayley blinked. She then stared at Bebe for a moment before she gained a smile, "It's like the ranch? Are you thinking…?"

"Yes I am. I can get in contact with the PC admin in Alola to get you safe travels there," Bebe smiled.

"Alright!" Hayley cheered.

* * *

A few days passed and Hayley was onboard a boat departing from Sandgem Town. She happily waved towards Bebe as the boat pulled out of the area.

"Good luck in Alola!" Bebe cheered as she waved.

"Thank you!" Hayley responded.

* * *

Hayley arrived at the Poké Pelago within a few hours. She had an amazed look as she looked at the large beanstock with various kinds of beans and then she saw the Pokémon that were living at the area.

"Wow…" she gawked as she saw an Alolan Grimer interacting with a Salazzle, "Cool Pokémon…"

"Hello there," a male voice greeted, "You must be Hayley."

"And you must be Mohn," Hayley smiled as she turned to face him, "Nice to meetcha. I'm happy to help out in whatever it is you need to care for these Pokémon."

"You're enthusiastic. I like it. Well, here's where you can start..."

* * *

" _Dear diary… I have been in Alola for a week now and I love it. The tropical environment is beautiful, the Pokémon are so amazing, and this island I'm working at is so amazing. I may miss the ranch an awful lot, but this place is a great new replacement. I hope that all of the Pokémon here will be friends for a lifetime…" Hayley wrote into her journal before a Rowlet landed on her hat, "Hey little guy. How are you?"_

"Ro…" the Rowlet greeted.

"Heh. You're nice…" Hayley smiled as she cuddled up with the Rowlet…

* * *

 _In loving memory of the Wii Shop Channel_

 _December 12th, 2006-January 30th/31st, 2019_

* * *

The reason for the two dates is because I've heard conflicting information about what day the Wii Shop Channel will no longer work. I put both just in case.

The idea of Hayley going to the Poké Pelago is because the area did honestly remind me of the Pokémon Ranch… minus the need for another console and virtual money. Surprised she wasn't in the area in either version of the Gen 7 games. As a quick aside… I do hope that we see Hayley again in another game. Not outside the realm of possibility for it to happen. Professor Burnet was from the Pokémon Dream Radar stuff and she's in the main games. Brigette, the sister of Hoenn's PC admin, is from the Box game for Ruby and Sapphire and she's now the manager of the Pokémon Bank. Hayley returning is completely in the realm of possibility.

As a quick comment… this is somewhat based on my memories with the game. The mention of a traded Pokémon of hers being on the team of somebody who challenged the Elite Four is a nod to the fact I did trade a Pokémon to get a Staravia and I just decided to use it on my team for whatever reason. Don't remember why I did, but I did and it helped me beat the Elite Four. Look at the vlog for proof of that. Anyway, I say somewhat based on my memories because I've been playing the game for a long time and some of it is a little blurry because of how long it's been. The game is going to be 11 years old this year. ...oh wow. Saying that makes me feel just a tiny bit old.

Another thing… there are nods to other Pokémon games you could get via the Wii Shop Channel in this story. See if you can find the nods and the game they're from.

Before I get asked about Fiore being to the south of Sinnoh… it would make sense. In the Manaphy mission in Pokémon Ranger, where Fiore is from, it's mentioned that Sinnoh is the closest region and it's not to much of a stretch to see it connecting to the southern end of Sinnoh. That is canon to my little headcanon of the geography of the Pokémon world. Me and KKD did a ramble about that sometime back, so check that out for more details on this topic.

I hope that you enjoyed this little one-shot in memory of the Wii Shop Channel. May you rest easy, Wii Shop Channel. You will be missed.

Just Live More.


End file.
